Gulp. Wheeze. Sputter. How about those Astros?

Some offense, huh? You know things are going bad when the pitching gets straightened out and the offense stays silent. If you’re an optimist–and let’s face it, the people who frequent this blog are nothing if not optimists–you look at two things.

You convince yourself that the hitting is going to be okay. That’s the position I’ve maintained since Day One. Once Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee both start to hit, the Astros will score plenty of runs.

(Hunter Pence had three doubles and three RBIs in raising his batting average to .342 Tuesday night.)

I’m sticking by that prediction if it kills me. I’m getting so tired of being called a flip-flopper. And before you even ask, I’ll tell you up front it’s not killing me to stick with that prediction. It’s making me slightly nauseous and giving me a few dizzy spells, but it’s definitely not killing me.

Next time you hear me criticize Craig Biggio, stuff a sock in my mouth. The man got 67 percent of the offense in Tuesday’s 3-0 loss at Pittsburgh. Remember how I wrote yesterday that nothing will make a team look dead faster than a poor effort by a starting pitcher? That’s true.

When you’ve got good starting pitching, you’re always in the game. You may not win it, but you usually need just one hit at the right time. The Astros didn’t get that one hit at the right time Tuesday. Okay, in Tuesday’s loss, they needed more than one hit at the right time. They needed two or three of them.

Don’t pull the plug our the Local Nine yet. The Astros will score runs. If Jason Jennings returns and if Troy Patton or one of the kids establish themselves, the pitching might be adequate, too. And then again, the Texans might win 14 games and Jeff Van Gundy may be a stand-up comedian next fall.

Come to think of it, here’s a scenario. How about the Astros stay around .500 for half a season and then bring both Hunter Pence and Troy Patton up to start the second half of the season? They could energize a clubhouse and a city, not to mention a press box. If you’ve ever sat beside Briant McTaggart, you’ll look anyplace you can for energy.

David Halberstam was the American journalist of our time. He wrote about Vietnam (“The Best And The Brightest” ), about communications goliaths (“The Powers That Be” ), the demise of the American auto industry (“The Reckoning” ), the civil rights movement (“The Children” ), the reality and ramifications of the 1950s (“The Fifties” ), the Clinton White House (“War In A Time Of Peace” ), 9/11 (“The Firehouse” ), and he has left us a posthumous tome on the Korean War (“The Coldest Winter” ) that will hit the bookstores in September.”

What about trading Lidge and Burke for a starting pitcher and bringing up Pence to play center? I’d hate to part with Burke but with I think Hunter can hadle it and we can sign Loretta to play second next year.

First of all you are a flip flopper. Your themes song is the song off of Flipper “They call him flipper flipper” That’s all you do. Second of all I wouldn’t change my vote in the 2004 election. Maybe people in Houston wished today that could flip flop back to the Houston Post back when there was a decent newspaper in Houston. This town is to big to have one major newspaper.

Starting pitching got straightened out? Woody still hasn’t won a game nor is he likely to win one with that rag arm. Put it down..Woody is done.

And Chris Burke needs to ride the pine. I don’t care about that home run two seasons ago (okay, maybe a little) and I don’t care he went to Tennessee where Phil went to school. The guy is a stiff in center and he isn’t hitting. I never thought I’d say this, but if you are not going to

bring up Pence, then let Lane play. He can’t be any worse that what Burke has given this team so far this season. This is going to be one long year and every loss brings Roger closer to New York where they need him to get back in the race. The Red Sox are flying high right now..Clemens is headed to New York unless the Astros start showing something other than a mediocore tendency to get kicked around by the Pirates. The effort I saw in the past 2 games ought to make those guys back up to collect their big game checks.

Come now Richard, it’s OK to criticize Biggio’s overall contributions. His 2/3 of the offense tonight upped his average to an amazing .237. At least he’s now walked a whopping three times this season, which has helped raise his OBP to around an astonishing .280. Not that many of us expected him to do much better, but 3000 hits still can’t get here soon enough.

A more serious problem is Burke. He is god-awful against righties and has been since he came to the majors. I’m not sure what’s worse – Burke hitting well under the Mendoza line against righties or striking out one out of every 3 ABs against them. So not only is he not getting on base, but he’s not moving anybody over, either (whenever Biggio actually gets on base himself). It’s gotten so bad that Garner needs to start thinking about putting Lane in CF and Scott in RF more often against righthanders and benching Burke.

There’s also some guy named Hunter hitting .320 in AAA and can play CF just fine, but why think rationally when trying to solve this problem?

Lance Berkman needs to stop being a wimp and step up. That’s what great players do, and it became his responsibility the moment he got that fat check. I don’t see much fire in this team, especially the manager. Garner always looks bored to me. In my opinion, only Ausmus, Everett, Lee, and Oswalt play like they want to win every day. Probably Loretta too. Don’t you get that sense, Richard?

I’ll give Garner about 2 more weeks of this sorry excuse of being a MLB manager and Uncle Drayton needs to pull the plug on his act. As I have said from week 1, do anything you can to entice Bagwell to come and manage this team. I’m telling you, they will win the World Series!!

A good manager would do something to break Lance’s cycle, get him to concentrate harder.

Start Lance in right, Lamb at first. Bench him. Yell at him. We gotta get Berkman in gear.

Lee and Ensberg are the only ones really hitting. Scott had a hot streak but he’s cold as ice now.

Everett’s done better than expected. Biggio, with few walks and few hits, can’t be leadoff man. Why not Everett?

We thought Lee would add enough offense. But he didn’t. We need more hitting from our outfielders – Luke, Lane and Burke all stink.

It’s Pence time.

The Yankees will start a 20-year old pitcher on Thursday. Patton and our other minor leaguers are older than that. Pupura is too conservative with promoting youngters. If a 20-year-old can make it in NYC, then why can’t one of our 23 year olds make it in the friendly confines of Minute Maid Park?.

Woody gave us a quality start, but he sure looked like he was throwing batting practice again during the first few innings. The last few innings showed there may be some life left in him. Some.

The startling stat that I noticed during the last two losses to the Brewers was the 40 runners left on base in two games (25 and 15 respectively). I agree that the hitting should come around, but those games were pure agony.

I hope we’re not in for a long season, but I’ll stick with being an optimist. Hey, I’m a Houston fan.

THANK YOU!!! I was about to have to call you out as a flip-flopper for saying Biggio earned the right to go for 3000 and then criticizing him every game. How long until Berkman needs to take a few days off and start the season over? The guy is not even making contact. Does he need Lasik surgery? The Killer B that is embarrassing himself is Berkman–great player, but he needs a mulligan.

Hey, you sure write this blog a lot. You must be bored out there on the South Plains. I do believe Biggio has earned the right to have a say he how he goes out. With that privilege goes the responsibility not to embarrass himself or the organization. He came close in the second half of last season. He has gotten it going the last two games. Maybe this is the start of something. Every previous time he has looked like he was done, he has gotten hot.–Richard

On another note, I figured out how to fix Lidge. How do I know? Because its the only thing the Astros haven’t tried: make him a starter. There is a fine line between genius and insanity. I mean, seriouly, why not give it a try? Sure, he only has 2 1/2 pitches…but who knows?

To clarify the left on base situation: Saturday night, adding up the individual LOBs for each Astro hitter, they left 25 guys on base (including 5 by Biggio, and 6 by Lee!!), but in actuality they were the the same runners left on by multiple batters. The team LOB was 9. Similarly, Sunday, the individual LOBs totaled 15, but there were only six guys in all left on. Last night, 11 runners were left on by multiple batters, but it was a total of six runners left on base.

Don’t worry, tonight’s total will get us back on the normal distribution curve. The batters left the two baserunners on five times.

I do believe the Astros look as lifeless as their manager. I do not mind the losing if their is a clear sign of life behind it. I hope that some fresh legs get in these games soon (on the mound and in the outfield). We have enough of a veteran core that we can handle some young guys in these games. There is no excuse for not having Everett in their everyday. How many of those balls do you think that Loretta let through Everett and/or Brutlett would have handled? It was tough to watch. Centerfield defense is a must. We owe it to a medicore pitching staff. I hope Mr. McLane is not banking on a August/September run to get to the playoffs. It is still early enough to correct the offseason moves and roster decisions that management has made. Sure we may win 8 of 10 again but then what? We need a steady and consistent improvement as a team as the season plays through. Garners favorites are slowly killing me. What is wrong with him anyway? He likes players that perform every other year? Biggio’s determination if nothing else is refreshing and something to look forward to each and every game. That is matched only by a handful of players on this team. I say turn over this team now to new leadership. I will be watching on the tube and in person regardless, but it would be nice not to have to cover one eye when the ball is hit to center.

I can’t believe you are still on the Chron payroll. If that can happen, the Astros still have a shot. I still like your idea of moving to Fargo. Take some time and think about it. I’ll help your flip flopping rear pack.

Whats the biggest disappointment? Berkmans prolonged hitting disabilities or Burke continuing to prove he was terribly overrated. Astros are determined to show he is a real #1 pick. Whats he got 2 rbi in 20 games. Wonder how many LOBs for him this year. Maybe hes got physical problems, I don’t know but the guy can’t hit. Timy, send his and Lidge’s “potential” somewhere else for something.

Am I the only one who thinks Burke is a bigger problem than Biggio right now? At least Biggio is getting some critical hits (homers) and not making mistakes (hitting into double plays, pop-up bunts, errors on defense). I really hope that Burke is the guy that most of you’ll think he can be, cause I haven’t really seen much from him yet.

i haven’t heard ONE word about how stupid we were to get rid of willy taveras

now lance berkman is a wimp and needs to step it up or get put in right???

i am hearing “play jason lane”

not DFA jason lane

all of a sudden i am not hearing demands to get rid of everett and play loretta at short (gee, even “fans” have eyes and they work bettern loretta’s glove)

and what SHOULD get garner fired is doing something unspeakably stupid like putting loretta the statue at short and the lamb with the glove of iron at third when we have an extreme ground ball pitcher pitching. dear lord they looked like the yankees on the field (hint – NOT a compliment.)

leave him be about biggio – how often he hits, him hitting leadoff. we all know it is not his call.

but i get to hear great stuff like – bring up a AA lefty when rightys in AA are slamming him instead of one of our AAA guys who are doing great. and why?

cuz the yankees are bringing up a 20 year old – yeh – the fact that their ML rotation is making wandy look like koufax got NOTHING to do with it. no, they just into YOUTH!!! and we should do everything just like them. yeh. i mean, look how good it works out having all the horrid fielders on the field at the SAME TIME!!!!!

and lee has basically quit hitting – check his stats on this road trip – he’s 3 fer 26 and he was 1 fer milwaukee – pathetic. and he can’t field ANY ball unless it is a hanging flyball.

and we know bagwell would be a good manager with zero experience coaching or managing because because – um, because larry dierker was. yeh. that’s the ticket. and larry he took us straight to the world series. yeh, NOW i remember. the heck with cooper, who is, and should be next in line. he’s just there to show the astros aren’t really racist, yeh, that’s right.

and yeh i can see roger heading right for ny with that great rotation – mmmmm good – and their best in the ML bullpen with all their saves and

oh, not ONE single yankee reliever has a save? and mariano he got more blown saves than that horrible human being brad lidge who has lost us every game we played this year by just existing and breathing up all the winning air?

imagine that.

yeh, i can see roger going straight to ny all right. they the 98 yankees all over again – headed straight to the series.

I know its still April and possibly a bit early for trade talk, and I also know that you don’t always respond to trade proposals. That being said I have one for you. Do you think the Astros will give in to the inevitable and trade Lidge? (personally i think Lidge can get back his “mojo”, just not as an Astro) Also, Ive heard rumors that Tampa Bay is interested in Lidge. What are the odds of a Lidge,(Lane or Burke) trade straight up for Carl Crawford? Would Tampa Bay even consider this or is Lidge’s trade value now too low? I would appreciate it if you can respond, if not I understand that as well. By the way I really enjoy the blog, and the give-and-take with the fans.

okay, guys. I know of a secret deal that’s gonna bring Clemens back by May 28th. Apparently, he’s growing nostalgic and patriotic to the Astros after watching their uncalibrated and anemic offense after the last couple of games, and he’s dying to come back. The only problem is that he wants to move Chris Burke to catcher and put Ausmus in center. He just loves how the Astros put infielders in the outfield and vice-versa. He also wants Oswalt to play third, Moelher at short, and Jose Cruz back in left. Additionally, in order to guarantee no run support (he just loves it when he loses ballgames after only giving up one or two runs), he wants to play with only 5 guys. Lastly, no call-ups whatsoever from the farm. None. Nada.

Apparently, Purpura is flying back to Houston today to ink the deal. Wow.

I don’t pretend to know this team and I have watched 99% of every game. I saw in McTaggart column that Garner was not happy said the Astros stink. I admit I never heard of that pitcher but our only problem last night was Maholm he was better than we were. 143 games to go if we win our next 5 games we are leading the central division. We are not playing well right now. You nailed it stay around 500 make some good moves win 18 out of 20 after the all star break waltz into the playoff.

Woody wasn’t as much good yesterday as lucky. The Pirates lineup is hardly murderers row. Any pitcher who surrenders nine hits in seven innings against their hitters will be torched by any decent hitting team.

The Astros have never been a ball club that can hit south paws. They stood there like statues as strikes whizzed across the plate.(I know balls and strikes are subjective, but we have to find a true way of determining the right call. These umpires need to have their training refined. Some of those breaking pitches from Maholm were not strikes.) I do like the fact that Gar has been shooting straight in post game. “We stunk tonight.” Well, thank you Captain Obvious.

We have to be optimists RJ. We are the die hard. We are pesimists in the 8th inning of an 11-4 route, and once the game is over, it has got to be “We’ll get em next time.”

By the way, Sock inserted. Let Biggio play.

Where is Lance Berkman. It’s like the movie “The Last Starfighter” from the 80′s. The real Lance Berkman is up in the galaxy somewhere fighting evil aliens while they left a sub par replacement clone of Berkman here on Earth. Yeah that’s right, A ‘Last Starfighter’ reference. Read it and weap.

Same old Astros, just a different year. The Astros catch phrase should be: “Come to the juice box and help the ‘Stros scrap wins!”.And Woody Williams is staying true to his career numbers against certain teams, he always beats the Astros when he pitches.

Focusing the blame for the team’s offensive woes on Biggio is ridiculous. He’s struggling right now but have you taken a look at Lance Berkman’s average lately?

It used to be that as Bagwell goes, so go the Astros. Now that spot belongs to Berkman. He’s the pivotal guy in the lineup. Once he gets it going, the rest of the guys will feed off it.

Biggio is actually chasing two milestones this year. Everyone’s talking about the 3000 hit milestone. I haven’t heard anyone in the media mention that he’s only 16 home runs from 300, a realistic goal when you factor the Crawford Boxes into the mix.

You can count the number of players in the 3000 hit-300 HR club on two hands ’cause there’s only 10 of them.

Hank Aaron

Stan Musial

Carl Yastrzemski

Willie Mays

Eddie Murray

Cal Ripken

George Brett

Dave Winfield

Rafael Palmeiro

Al Kaline

Excluding Roidhead Palmeiro, all those guys are in the Hall of Fame. That’s pretty elite company Biggio could join this year.

We have to start producing more runs. I love Biggio, but it’s about winning, not chasing records. The best players should be in the daily lineup. Biggio can play at home against lefties, but Loretta plays the rest.

And second, we just aren’t going to get it done with Wandy. Shouldn’t we bring up at least one of our young studs to give them a shot: Gutierrez (sp?), Patton, Nieve.

This team just looks lethargic. Poor play is infectious and this team is infected. I’m not sure there is a specific fix available. It is early in the season but we have seen these extended funks too many times from this team. Four losses in a row and we have Wnady coming up tonight against a team that seems to have our number. Who does’nt have their number right now?

Berkman looks bad at the plate..much like Quintero or Biggio swinging at a curveball. Luke, Lance and Loretta are looking at way too many 3rd strike calls. That is just bush league! If I were still coaching kids, I’d point out that is one of the worst things a batter can do on the field..much like an infielder allowing a ground ball to go through the wickets.

I wish/ hope that Mr. Garner has a stern word for some or all the players on this team. I wonder sometimes if a coach has to walk on eggs around these players and is relunctant to actually coach them. I realize they are pros and supposedly know what they are doing wrong, but they still need to be coached and if they make a silly mistake, it should be pointed out.

Well, it doesn’t help to have a 4-game win streak if you’re going to follow it up with a 4-game losing streak. Not the kind of progress I was hoping for. It’s interesting that the problems many fans predicted for this season aren’t necessarily where the trouble’s at. Who knew Ensberg and Ausmus would be near the tops in ‘stros AVG while Berkman sits near the bottom. Ouch! Not at all what I pictured. Let’s bring up the young ones already. They can’t do any worse.

P.S. Do we REALLY need to bring up the Yankees on this blog? Isn’t it enough that ESPN will continue to show almost their entire season and break-in to programming with an A-rod HR? Please, enough already.

I just don’t understand why Mike Lamb has not been used more at this point in the season? He’s been one of our top hitters the last few years and always seems to deliver in the clutch. I understand that PIT started a lefty last night, but what is it going to take to get him back in the mix?

Why is everyone plugging Pence into the two-hole. Why would you bat an untested rookie in a position that requires patience and contact, and why would you bat a power hitter in a position that often requires you to give up your at bat with a sacrifice?

I’m definitely an advocate for calling up Pence, but I’d bat him 5th or 6th.

The yanks have another month before Pettite’s elbow trouble if they keep pitching him in the bullpen, if it happens and it’s bad enough, their season is over and roger will either retire or come here. Here’s hoping Pettite’s elbow causes the yanks to get cubbish and start buying pitching again, robinson cano for lidge is what i want

Something is wrong with the team, just last week they were fired up and had the eye of the tiger…today was beyond pathetic, more terrible at-bats than good ones…only good thing was woody finally had some control and fastball life

Go figure, Ensberg is hurt again…Garner scratched him before the game started and I’d speculate that Ensberg said he was ready to go yet he was obviously hurt…same old Ensberg…let Lamb start, the guy squares up on the ball and has a good eye…at least platoon him with Loretta

Jason Lane needs to start everyday because he is swinging the bat as if each one is his last

Luke Scott needs to start everyday because contrary to what Garner sees, the dude can hit righties AND lefties

This leads to Burke…sorry Chris but you only get to play on day games after night games…your hitting is finally coming around even though you’re still not catching any breaks, wait til we get back to MMP and then practice that swing I saw in person in the 18th

Garner thinks Biggio will eventually hit the 3 foot outside slider, at least thats the only thing I can come up with…I love Craig but he is not in the top 25 starting second basemen in the majors, his defense is shaky (i’ll be nice)as well…if he causes everett to get an error again, ill lose it…one thing is for sure, his on base percentage is ridiculous for a leadoff man

Everett is having a great start and his men in scoring position average is high, like always…since he cant stay off those sliders away, why not let him hit leadoff or 2nd where he’ll get more fastballs…he’ll also have a chance to use his speed on the basepaths with a purpose for the first time ever…besides, if anyone should bat 7th, it’s Craig

here’s hoping Garner realizes we got dominated by an average pitcher today…

Has anybody stopped to think that maybe the ‘Stros are just average this year and that’s the way it is? We have come to expect great things every year and maybe that is just not the case this year. It may be that we let Biggio get his 3000, give the youngsters some more seasoning, wait for Backe to get healthy….and that is all we can expect from this year. This team will be virtually the same next year, with a few positive additions, Pence, Backe (Which may mean no more Wandy), a more experienced Albers, Sampson, etc….so I foresee great things. We will also have a final analysis on Burke, Scott, Lidge and Lane and some tough decisions will be made (hopefully). I’ve changed my mindest to just enjoy the games and not to expect much from this team in a weird transition period. Then again, in this division, who knows what can happen in September?

“Well all of you anti-Biggio fans, what do you have to say now.. He had not one, but two of the Astros hits last night.. ”

Small Sample Size. Small Sample Size. Small Sample Size. Small Sample Size. Small Sample Size.

The guy is batting .237, with a .284 OBP, and a .241 EqA. This is your leadoff hitter. Repeat, this is your LEADOFF hitter. He makes an out 72% of the time.

If he keeps getting 2 hits per game for 10 days in a row, you can start saying that the Biggio “haters” should reevaluate their position. I’m thinking the odds are against you.

And for the last time, nobody HATES Biggio. He was the best player in Astros history. But he’s 41 years old, and not full of elephant steroids like Bonds. Most guys realise they should probably stop playing by the time they reach 40.

It’s hard to get a save when your rookie starting rotation gives up 8 runs, or when your own guys bash in 12.

A week ago, everyone raved about the Yankees bullpen being third best in the AL (after Minnesota and Anaheim). Now they’ve allowed some runs, and they’re a bunch of scrubs. Which are they really?

I think Roger’s clever enough to understand that the fact that “The yankees don’t have a save,” doesn’t mean anything.

That said, I don’t think Roger will go to NY. Or to Boston. He’ll either pitch for Houston, or retire. I think the Astros really need to show they’re about WINNING this year, rather than making Drayton some more money, to keep Roger from retiring, however.

(and having said that, I can easily see him unretire again next year.)

“What are the odds of a Lidge,(Lane or Burke) trade straight up for Carl Crawford?”

LOL. Are you serious? In order for Tampa Bay to trade Carl Crawford, you’d probably have to offer something like Oswalt (and pay his salary) plus Wheeler plus Hunter Pence. Seriously. No team in the league would deal Carl Crawford, he’s rapidly on his way to become one of the ten best player in the ML.

Now, Lidge plus change for, say, one of their other outfielders (Baldelli comes to mind) might be more palatable for them.

Why is Morgan Ensberg still in everyones “Fantasy Astros” lineup? He is terrible. We have a guy by the name of Mark Loretta who is a proven player and should be hitting infront of Berkman and Lee..

“Lane is increasing his trade value”?!?!?!?! I stopped reading that. If I can recall the guy is hitting .229 (6-29). Yes, 4 HR’s. So what? He is Rob Deer in the making, he made his trade value go up to where? We could not even get Kirk Sarloos back if we wanted.

RJ…I’m surprised in mentioning the works of David Halberstam you left out his great baseball books, “Summer of ’49″, and “October 1964.” With the recent lamenting of the fact there are fewer Afro-Americans in the majors today than 10 or 15 years ago, “October 1964″ is worth a re-read. I think I’ll start now.

Have a good day, and…Go Astros!!!

Those weren’t my words. They were from a column by Bob Ryan. I read all his sports books.–Richard

ive seen most of berkman’s ABs this season, and he has reminded me immensely of ensberg of last season…. with that in mind, i think the addition of carlos lee may have had a negative impact on berkman (not the team) thus far into the season. berkman seems significantly more passive at the plate when compared to last year. he reminds me of ensberg in the fashion that he seems to be taking the ‘draw the walk’ approach instead of going up there and swinging… granted, its nice that he is trying to get on base for el caballo, but i think this mentality is killing his run production… not all of his bombs and rbi’s last year came on strikes. agree?

I love how everyone thinks that calling up Hunter Pence prematurely is going to somehow make everyone else start hitting again. He’s never even faced major league pitching before. Believe it or not, but players in general don’t magically become major league stars over night. Not only is the level of talent higher in the majors, but you are under a tremendous amount of pressure to do well, especially if you are called up TOO SOON! Just because someone does well in the minors does not mean it will carry over into the big leagues. It’s a big difference. Sure, some players make the transition (read: few), but many do not. There’s this snazzy player over at Kansas City named Alex Gordon who was named 2006 Minor League player of the year, where he hit .325 with 29 HRs, 100 RBI, and a 1.015 OPS. He made the club out of Spring training is currently batting .125.

Besides, even if he does come in here and starts batting .400 the team won’t win any games unless everyone else starts hitting, too.

There wouldn’t be this discussion on Biggio if he hadn’t made the decision to strike in ’94. He already would have his 3,000+ and might have left with dignity last year. Who knows? This team is strugglin’ right now for lots of reasons.

saying that mike lamb is not as bad a fielder as he used to be is like saying brad ausmus is not as bad a slugger as he used to be.

i will be happy to look at ANY defensive metrics from ANY defensive expert (except clay davenport) such as chris dial, sean smith or david pinto, who says that mike lamb is even league average at third. he isn’t. he’s barely below league average at first. and in case you prefer the eyeball test of someone besides me, check out tango tiger’s fans’ defense evaluations.

Those that are in love with Burke will live to regret it. In center he’s a butcher. From what I can tell at this point we’re waiting with bated breath that Biggio retires so we don’t have to play Burke in Center.

Your one of the best columns I read and don’t let all these idoits who have nothing better to do than take jabs at you get under your skin. I agree with you 100 %, our offense will come on soon. What Purpura lacks is what we call “huevos”. Come on Purpura/Garner let Pence play, bench Burke, bat Ensberg 2nd-Biggio 7th and roll the dice because our history of coming back the second half of the season is going to come to an end. Unless the third time is the charm. Do we as Astros fans need to have our hearts broken for half th season only to hope for second half magic. Also, it would be a great idea to trade Lidge,etc to the Yankees as a deterent for Clemens–that would almost assure he’d be wearing an Astro uniform this year.

Time to get off Biggio’s case….even before tonights three hits. Sure he’s not a leadoff guy anymore, but who on this team is right now? Berkman? Actually, that’s a thought. Wasn’t it Billy Martin, at a time when the Yankee’s were mired in a deep slump, who picked the line-up out of his cap? If Reggie Jackson could do it, so can Lance. He’s got a better eye anyway. Biggio gets to play everyday because of loyalty….the organization is paying him back in kind. How many recent clubs have had teammates like Biggio/Bagwell play entire careers together? Would Oswalt and Berkman have signed long term deals below market value for another team? For better or worse, we get to watch guys play their whole careers under one roof. Not many baseball fans have that chance anymore.

What a complete waste of five hours of my life. I’ve never seen a worse effort at situational hitting in a single game. Well, since the last time the Astros went 16 innings in Pittsburgh and lost. Chris Burke contributed about as much to this game as Milo Hamilton sitting at home. Round Rock scored 14 innings the other night. Just call them all up and see if they can pick up more than one run against a starting pitcher in seven days. Unbelievable.

Clutch hitting remains a problem for this ballclub. Yeah, I know they got some big hits to tie the game in the ninth. But it cannot stop there.

A team that leaves 18 runners on base does not deserve to win. Good opposing pitching cannot be an excuse because good pitching does not put that many runners on base. When they left 7 on in the 9th, 10th, and 11th innings combined, somehow I just knew that they were not going to win this game.

So much for that 5 game winning streak.

Break out another Chronicle tombstone. Maybe THAT will light a fire under their [hind ends].

The early returns on the Jennings trade look like a disaster in the making for the Astros. Hirsh looks like a strong no. 3 starter, Taveras can’t hit but he was the only true CF on the Astros’ roster, and Buchholz had a half-year of ML starting experience with still untapped upside. Meanwhile, Jennings is on the DL. Anybody still think this was a good trade?

Unfortunately for us fans this year, 2007 is plain and simple a transition year to 2008 and all about Biggio getting to 3000 hits (gotta love Uncle D’s focus on pr) – if the team happens to turn out to be competitive this year, then it’s a bonus.

Some justification to my reasoning:

1) Burke is clearly out of position and under no circumstances will he be a long-term solution in CF. He’s there to get regular AB’s so he’ll have less of an adjustment next season when he assumes the 2B role full time. This obviously has spillover effects, as Pence appears ready to be given a shot but will toil in AAA until next year, or if Biggio gets benched after getting to 3k, then maybe later this season;

2) Oswalt, Berkman and Lee are all signed to multi-year deals – potentially sacrificing a year for PR’s sake won’t hurt their status in 2008;

3) Little effort was put into resigning Pettite, as the thinking is that beyond 2007, he won’t be worth the big bucks any more. By the way – what is the deal with Andy? Aside from the second half of 2005, he was consistently a 4.00+ ERA guy with us, now he looks like Cy Young reincarnated with a 1.78 ERA in 25+ innings;

4) Jennings is “undervalued” salary wise (in baseball terms) – Astros picked him up for 2007 hoping to resign him to a long-term deal with the typical Astros home-town discount. Only way to get that discount for 2008 and beyond is to get him this year. If he leaves, oh well, he’s still cheaper than Pettite would have been this season;

5) The only things that puzzle me are the Woody Williams and Loretta signings – window dressing to appear the team is making a serious effort for 2007?